Looks Like School’s Out for at Least a Few More Days in Chicago

After a week of staring directly into Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s soulless, inkwell eyes, the Chicago teachers union has resisted the tempting urge to blink and will wade into the second week of its strike. Schools will stay shuttered come Monday morning after union delegates declined to formally vote on contract settlements hammered out over the weekend. According to union president Karen Lewis, not only aren’t the teachers happy with the proposed settlements, they also “feel rushed,” because Rahm Emanuel is one tough cookie to crack, probably, if we were to describe his cookieness figuratively, a lot like a stale ginger snap.

The union has said that the soonest classes would resume is Wednesday, but there seems to be an awful lot of mistrust (and acrimony) hampering negotiations. Speaking of which, “tough negotiator” runs in Rahm Emanuel’s family — his brother Ari is one of those big shot talent agents you hear about on the TV. That might be part of the reason why Mayor Emanuel is now seeking an injunction to declare the walkout illegal. For almost 350,000 Chicago public school students, summer is taking a second encore, but a third would probably be way too tacky, even for the flashiest of seasons.